A medical device may be worn on or embedded in a body of a person to deliver medication to the person using a needle, cannula, etc., to dispense the medication from a reservoir in the medical device into the body of the person using a pump, such as a mechanical or electric pump. The medical device may be a single-use device; once the reservoir is empty, the medical device is discarded. Other medical devices may be refillable. Refillable medical devices may be more cost effective than single-use devices and may provide other benefits.
Filling single-use medical devices and/or refilling refillable medical devices, however, may present challenges. A user may need to transfer liquid drug from a liquid drug container or vial to the medical device. This may present challenges such as ensuring that the medication remains sterile before, during, and after filling. This may also present challenges such as ensuring that the correct type and/or dosage of medication is used to fill the medical device. A need therefore exists for a reliable mechanism for filling a medical device while ensuring that the correct type and/or dosage of medication is used to fill the medical device.
In addition, transferring the drug to the medical device can be a challenging task for a user as it may require precise handling of the drug in its container or vial and the medical device. In many instances, a user may be required to use a transfer device such as a syringe to withdraw the drug from its container or vial and to transfer that drug to the medical device. This may require the user to align a needle tip of a syringe with a liquid drug container or vial to withdraw the drug into the syringe and/or to align a needle tip of a syringe containing the drug with a fill port of the medical device. Properly aligning the syringe needle tip with a liquid drug container or vial and/or the fill port of a medical device can be difficult, particularly for users that may have compromised motors skills. Generally, the needle tip of the syringe must be precisely aligned in order to ensure proper transfer of the drug without spillage or waste. A need therefore exists for a more convenient and reliable mechanism for aligning a syringe needle tip with a liquid drug container or vial and/or with the fill port of a drug delivery medical device.
Further, many users of drug delivery medical devices may have limited or impaired motor skills. Such users may be at risk for being hurt by a needle that may be exposed during the drug transfer process. Accordingly, a need therefore also exists for an easy-to-use filling system that reduces the likelihood of being hurt by an exposed needle.
There is therefore a need for improved filling or refilling devices and techniques that may be used in conjunction with drug delivery medical devices.